The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-01-19
At TEN DOLLARS A HEAD.
HOW A FIGHT IS BEING MADE AGAINST
JUDGE DURHAM.

An Attorney OF this City Undertakes
to Get ELI Through Congress ia
CurtnfI the Comptroller's Power.-
He Collects n Small Fee from Off
GERS whose Accounts Have Been
Overhnulcd...An Interesting Bit Ol
Inside History, Coming From tho
Office in Which Abbeville's Rising
Son. ]. AItheus johnson, Serves an
Important Part.
Washington Post.
Comptroller Durham, Of the Treasury De
pari mcnt, Is giving sn much annoyance to the
United States Commissioners and United
States Marshals all over the country, by scru
tinizing their accounts in way IN whicf
they were never scrutinized before, that {
strong effort is being made by those concern &C
to have his absolute power as accounting Off
Ger cnrtaileh by establishing right Of appca
from his decisions. at present. II lie disal
lows or suspends on account, his decision Is
final.
the interest Of these aggrieved United State!
Commissioners and Mnrshals, providing tina
I'm the matter Of the accounts of officers, wht
hold their anpointments under the Depart
the decision or the Comptroller to the Attor
ney General.
ACCOUNTS FULL OF IRREGULARITIES.
Comptroller Durham was not long IN ofnc'
before he found that United states Marshal
and their deruties were IN the habit of con
Veying, say three or four, prisoners all In 10
from court to penitentiary, and charging TO
three or four trips, according to the number
prisoners, while In reality only one trip wa
made. United States Commissioners in likt
manner were found in their accounts To mul
tiply days and cases and witnesses In II mos
prodignl manner to build up the fee bill
Judge Durham has set his face boldly agains
all such sharp practice. He has asserteI tht
principle that when only one trip Is made on
| ly one trip shall he paid for, and that Unltet
Suites Commissioners shall not be allowed Il
manufacture useless and frivolous and friend
| ly prosecutions and spread them out over III
unnecessary number of days, and employ In
Vulnerable witnesses at the expense or TIT
| Government,
APPEALING TO THE PRESIDENT.
The officials concerned feel much hurt b!
| this ruthless Interference with their Custonlh
ry incomes. They have protested to Judg
vain: I'm vain they have fallen back on the In
| fiuence Of their RerrrSen tntives and Senators
Some of them have nprenlcd to The Atorne!
General, and some OF them have even gone Il
The First Comptroller Is master Of the sttua
| tion, and he kcers his ground unfiinchingEy
Some of the officers concerned have hnnll,
fnl, account, bnt others. like Marshal Marrir
T. Mcmahon, Of New York. still hold out ant
keep up the fight against the Comptroller.
AN ALLEGED PERtURER.
One Of McNlahon's deputies, the Comptrol
| ler discovered, attached his solemn oath to ar
account which investigation proved tn b.
false Since then the Comptroller declines t
pass any account presented on the authorit!
Of that deputy In each case he has hi wr,,a;l Nr,I
ative evidence. which the Marshal declines Il
furnish, as he does not see why one mans &c
count shonld not pass ms readily ms nnother's
He protested against the proposed discrlmina
ton, and when the Comptroller sugRestat
that man who had sworn falsely to dcfrant
the Government should be dismissed from
the service the Marshal took offanSe at wha
! he regarded MS the TN warranfabie interferenr'
i of an outsider in his business. With the ex
ception Of few hot words In response 10 tha
suggestion. the Marshal has held no commu
nication with The Comptroller since, beyorrt
merely transmitting his accounts to tn
Treasury Department monthly and receivin!
| draft for the amount certified by the Conn
tiOller. In no case has the amount OF thi
prescribed dcputy's accounts heen included u
the draft. The suspension OF that part of tll'
Marshni's ncrOunt has been going on conttnu
ouslv ior several months and has made dlt
ferenc, of several thousand dollars to III
| Marshal. The Marshal keeps coming down Il
|
| Attorney General, who has no control owe
| The accounts any more than the elevator bn.
has. lie called uron the President Mt tn
White House yesterday, but what satisfaction
he got Is not known.
AN ATTORNEY TO THE FRONT.
The severity of the Comn'roller's scrutin.
and the chagrin or the officials whose &C
counts were affected brought an attorney int
he field IN The person OF a. j. Falls, VII.
keeps law office at lil9 street northwest
Mr. Falls prepared the following letter ant
addreSsedit TO the large number of nfficifl
who feel aggrieved at the way in which thti
accotnis have been cut uown by Comptrolle
| Durham:
DEAR SIR: I propose introducing n bill II
Congress Mt once giving the right to appeal b
the Attorney General from the action Of tn
accounting officers. / am satisfied that Gil
| have the bill became law, and am Willing
TO undertake 1t on behalf Of the officers Of tn
courts interested therein.
| Now, as you are aware, when the account
ing officers decide question against you
there Is no appeal. and their decision Is Jtnu
| Under the proposed law you will have tn
| right to appeal nud the question Will be con
sidered by the Department with which 20,
have personal relations.
| / will undertake 10 get the bill through 70
a retainer OF ten dollrrs $4,000, and no addi
tionnl fee, except such business as you ma.
have arising under the law, to be sent to me-
| that IL, when you have n decision OF IN
Comptroller's which you think IL one whicl
should be reviewed-any and all such Ques
tinns arising In your accounts to- be sent L;
me- to be argued before the Attorney Gene
| raj. upon such terms as we may agree upon
and which shall be entirely satisfactory Il
you.
| l need not point out to you the advantage q
having such AN act passed. Hoping to hca
from yon at an early date, am, Jours truly,
A.. j. FALLS.